


Not To Me

by heartyrus



Category: Andi Mack (TV)
Genre: Cyrus is insecure, M/M, Tyrus - Freeform, Wow I can't write, just fluffy bois, they are soft, tj is in LOVE, tyrus oneshot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-30
Updated: 2019-04-30
Packaged: 2020-02-10 01:41:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,894
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18650344
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/heartyrus/pseuds/heartyrus
Summary: No matter what Cyrus does,TJ finds it endearing, especially when everyone else does not.





	Not To Me

It was no secret that Cyrus Goodman was eclectic. Whether it was his obsession with reptiles or his extensive knowledge of therapeutic treatments (thanks to his four shrink parents), he was always a little “quirky” as some may say.

His friends–who had gotten used to his attributes–loved Cyrus. They were able to see a kind-hearted, sincere boy despite any mild oddities. Key word is: despite. Some of his habits, such as ‘tater theater’ or his lack of hand-eye coordination, were either ignored or gained a few eye rolls from his friends. And Cyrus was okay with the simple dismissal of his eccentricities. Well, for the most part.

Sometimes Cyrus wondered if anyone would actually enjoy his long conversations about dinosaur documentaries. Perhaps someone would like to go to the natural history museum with him and not be bored out of their minds. Maybe he’d meet someone who would actually listen to his impassioned rants about baby taters. What if someone actually liked the things that everyone else merely tolerated?

Whenever he would start to think that way, he shook the thoughts from his mind. His friends were awesome! No doubt about it. Andi was caring and loyal. Buffy was supportive and compassionate. Jonah was excitable and thoughtful. Who cares if they didn’t like listening to him talk about his niche interests?

So Cyrus remained himself, fully aware that his idiosyncrasies went unnoticed.

———

“Bet’cha I can finish my fries faster than you.” Buffy taunted, quirking an eyebrow at her boyfriend.

“Oh, you’re on Driscoll.” Marty dramatically cracked his knuckles before the two dived into their baskets of french fries.

Cyrus watched with a small smile on his lips as the couple bumped elbows and pushed each other playfully. To him, Buffy and Marty were the perfect match. The ideal that all couples should follow. They balanced each other perfectly and Cyrus couldn’t help but feel a twinge of jealousy because of their happiness. They had their downfalls and quarrels–mostly when Buffy decided to let her competitive side take over–but they both cared and accepted each other–flaws and all.

“It’s so…” Marty coughed after finishing his last fry half a second after Buffy. “Salty.”

“Is someone a sore loser?” Buffy said, her affectionate tone contrasting the snarky words as she passed Marty her unfinished milkshake.

“Never.” Marty replied after slurping down the last of it and giving Buffy a big smile.

Cyrus sighed softly, tracing the trail of crumbs on the counter absent-mindedly. How he wanted someone to look at him like that. Well, his brain corrected him, not just any someone. Looking up slightly through his lashes, he watched TJ finish off his baby taters and wipe his hands with a napkin. Somehow, even wiping grease off his fingers was attractive when TJ did it.

It had been about five months since he finally realized his feelings for the blonde boy. Cyrus got a clue when started to feel warm just sitting next to TJ. He tried his very best to keep his feelings at bay. Last thing he needed was for TJ to feel uncomfortable and stop being his friend. Sure, there had been times where he pictured TJ holding his hand and cuddling with him on the couch, but he stopped those delusions as soon as they came to him. TJ Kippen was about as straight as they come and even if he did like boys, he would never have a crush on someone like Cyrus.

“Something bothering you, Underdog?” TJ’s eyebrows furrowed in concern as he watched Cyrus zone out and stare at the table. That was one of the things that TJ was really good at; knowing when Cyrus was upset.

“I’m alright.” He lied through his teeth. “Didn’t get a whole lot of sleep last night.” Hopefully his soft smile would convince his friend that he wasn’t actually having a mental breakdown in The Spoon.

“You guys!” Andi interrupted the staring contest that the two boys were engaged in. “We have to go to the new art show! There’s an interactive sculpture station!” She was practically beaming as she showed the group a picture of some of the art installments on her phone.

“When is it?” Buffy asked, Marty’s arm now wrapped around her shoulders casually.

“Tomorrow night! Promise me that you’ll go with me!” Andi bounced slightly in her seat while waiting for her friends to respond. Various affirmations left the teens as most of them began to look forward to the cool pieces they would be seeing.

“I don’t think I can make it.” Cyrus cringed, he hated disappointing Andi, especially when she was all excited. “The Natural History Museum has a new exhibit opening following Pteranodons! They have new fossils and even a new life-sized sculpture. I can’t miss it!” He smiled, remembering how excited he was to see the announcement of the exhibit in the paper earlier in the week.

“Come on Cy.” Buffy groaned. “The fossils have been around for millions of years, I think you can wait a little longer to see them.” On her left, Andi nodded while Marty silently agreed.

“But there’s a special film playing in the exhibit about the rise and fall of the species. Did you know that Pteranodons actually lived in areas–” He was cut off by grumbles of protest.

“With all due respect Cyrus, none of us want to hear about some dead dinosaur.” Buffy crosses her arms, obviously bored with the conversation. “Just come to the art museum with us.”

Cyrus felt his heart drop in disappointment. He really didn’t want to miss out on the exhibit, but he also wanted to be with his friends. Pushing away his sadness, he nodded slightly. “Okay, you’re right. Sculptures are way cooler anyway.”

Marty, Buffy and Andi smiled before jumping into planning our the following evening. All the while, Cyrus just numbly agreed to their plans, wishing that he could be as eager as everyone else was. Slowly, the group began to disperse; Marty leaving with Buffy to walk her home and Andi rushing off to make some accessories for her outfit the next day. Only then did Cyrus snap out of his melancholy daze.

“You sure you wanna miss the opening of the exhibit?” TJ questioned, placing a hand on the shorter boy’s shoulder. “You love dinosaurs.”

 

Even though his last statement wasn’t negative, Cyrus stiffened as he thought about how lame that sounded. A fourteen year old boy should be into cars or something, not dinosaurs. “Yeah, it’s no big deal. It will probably be really dumb anyway.” Cyrus stated while he stood to put his jacket on.

 

Before he could turn to walk out the door, TJ’s hand softly grabbed his wrist. “What’s going on Cyrus?”

 

Uh oh. TJ only called him Cyrus when he was really serious. “I-I don’t know what your talking about, Teej. Everything’s fine.”

 

TJ gave him a classic ‘I-don’t-believe-a-word-you’re-saying’ look and stood up next to him outside of the booth. “Let’s go swing for a bit.”

 

———

 

Cyrus kept his eyes trained on the wood chips below his feet as he swung languidly on their favorite swing set. The sun was setting and a chill was hanging in the air, but he wasn’t sure if it was that or the nerves that were making him shiver.

 

“I don’t want to pressure you to talk.” TJ broke the silence that settled around them for the last ten minutes. “I just know that somethings not right.”

 

Curse TJ’s instincts. Cyrus came to a halt on his swing before meeting his friend’s concerned eyes. “It’s really stupid.”

 

TJ scoffed and Cyrus worried that he was mad at him before the basketball player spoke. “You keep saying that. Dumb. Stupid. I don’t see how it could be dumb or stupid if it’s making you feel bad.”

 

Cyrus felt his heart speed up and his cheeks heat. Even though there was nothing romantic about what TJ had just said, he still felt utterly cared for. “It’s just about the Pteranodon exhibit…”

 

“I had a feeling.” TJ sighed.

 

 

Crap. Cyrus thought. He’s already tired of me talking about it. It seems like it’s national ‘Cyrus is annoying’ day.

 

“Tell me about it, Underdog.” TJ smiled before shifting in his swing so he was facing Cyrus. “I know how much you care about it, so I wanna hear about it.”

 

Cyrus was shocked. He had to be kidding. No one had ever asked to hear him talk about dinosaurs! “Huh?”

 

“Pteranodons. Are they your favorite?” TJ’s smile was now a grin, egging the brunette on.

 

He must be a really good actor. He actually seems interested. “Well, no. I really like Pteranodons but they aren’t my favorite, especially not of the Cretaceous period…”

 

TJ chuckled and if Cyrus wasn’t already lost in his world of reptiles he would’ve noticed the obvious ‘heart-eyes’ that TJ was sporting while listening to the boy. Cyrus continued spouting all the facts he knew on the topic while TJ listened eagerly, soaking up the information and only speaking to add in a“uh-huh” and “really?” here and there.

 

“The males actually had a wingspan of 18 feet, but the females only had 12 feet. It’s kind of crazy because–” Cyrus cut himself off when he saw the look on TJ’s face.

 

In reality the blush and grin on TJ’s face were brought on by him watching his crush passionately speak about a dead reptile whose name he couldn’t even spell. He swore that he’s never seen anything cuter than how Cyrus talked with his hands and scrunched up his eyebrows when he found something particularly interesting.

 

To Cyrus, however, TJ looked like he was about to make fun of him. He looked about ready to burst out laughing until he was crying. “Sorry! I’ll stop.” Cyrus exclaimed, tilting his head back down towards the ground.

 

Great job. He thinks your a freak. Cyrus swallowed the lump forming in his throat as he willed himself not to cry. What could be more foolish?

 

“What?! I wanna know more about their wings!” TJ exclaimed, clearly confused as to why the boy stopped so suddenly.

 

“It’s lame. I’ll spare you.” Cyrus mumbled, eyes not leaving his shoes.

 

“What makes you think it’s lame?” TJ knelt down by Cyrus’ swing, so close that Cyrus could feel his body heat.

 

“I just know. Buffy and Andi always stop me from boring them with it.” Cyrus’ voice cracked pathetically.

 

“It’s not boring or lame. Not to me.” TJ took one of Cyrus’ hands into both of his and held it tight to try and reassure the boy. How could he show how much he loved the boy’s ramblings?

 

“Really? You’re not messing with me right?” Cyrus asked, eyes wide and hand stiff as he tried not to get too comfortable with TJ’s touch.

 

“I’m not! I love hearing you talk about dinosaurs. And documentaries. Even baby taters!” TJ laughed which caused Cyrus to giggle quietly as well. “You’re one of a kind.”

 

The softness of TJ’s voice shocked Cyrus and the look in the basketball player’s eyes almost mimicked adoration. “How about you and I go to the exhibit tomorrow? I’m sure Andi and Buffy won’t mind.”

Cyrus blushed even more if that was possible before nodding rapidly.

 

“It’s a date then.” TJ smirked.

**Author's Note:**

> (A/N: I wish I was a better writer, but I love the idea of Cyrus thinking he’s annoying and TJ loving him for it!)


End file.
